init in compile mode is ~2.4 s (tier loading, analyzer self-compile, macro
recompilation), paid by every process that builds a ctx from source — each
jpm-test file, embedders, workers. init-cached marshals the built ctx to a
disk image (same root-env dicts as snapshot/fork) and later processes
unmarshal it in ~5 ms, any process: nothing from the baking process is
needed at load.
The cache key fingerprints the embedded .clj stdlib (which covers jolt-core:
analyzer, IR, core tiers), the .janet seed sources next to the module, the
janet version, the init opts, and the env knobs that shape a ctx (JOLT_PATH/
MUTABLE/AOT_CORE/FEATURES) — any change rebuilds. Corrupt or non-ctx images
fall back to a rebuild (unmarshal of garbage can 'succeed' with a scalar, so
the shape is checked, not just the throw). Writes are atomic (tmp + rename)
so racing cold starts never publish a torn image. JOLT_NO_IMAGE_CACHE=1
opts out; JOLT_IMAGE_CACHE_DIR overrides the location (default TMPDIR).
Test consumers switch to init-cached (harness, suite-worker, conformance,
the behavioral unit/integration tests); tests that validate the bootstrap
itself (bootstrap-fixpoint, staged-bootstrap, aot round-trip, direct-linking)
and the deps tests (tmp-dir :paths would fragment the key) keep real init.
Full jpm test: 2:46 -> 1:58 (~29%). New ctx-image-test covers cold/warm,
cross-process load (subprocess runs defn/redef/macros/protocols/multimethods
off the baked image), per-opts keying, and corrupt-image fallback.
adds self-hosted compiler is functionally:
- The default compile path is the portable pipeline using jolt.analyzer (Clojure) → host-neutral IR → backend.janet.
- The analyzer is itself Clojure, compiled by jolt for true self-hosting.
- bootstrap-fixpoint passes (stage1 == stage2 == stage3): rebuilding the compiler on its own output.
- clojure.core is now self-hosted in the overlay.
- Stateful forms (defmacro/ns/deftype/defmulti/require/in-ns) are interpreted by design.
Two changes unlock native Janet speed in compile mode:
- Hot numeric primitives (+ - * < > <= >=) emit as native Janet SYMBOLS rather
than the variadic core fns, so Janet's compiler uses its arithmetic/compare
opcodes. = / not= / quot / rem / mod / division stay as core fns (their
semantics differ from Janet's). Trade-off: the strict non-number checks are
relaxed under compilation (documented perf-mode divergence).
- emit-invoke emits a DIRECT call (f arg...) when the callee is a function
reference (core/local/symbol/fn), instead of wrapping every call in jolt-call.
jolt-call is kept only for keyword/collection literals in call position
((:k m), ({:a 1} :a)) so IFn dispatch still works.
compiled fib(30): 3.4s -> 0.076s (native ceiling), faster than jank's 0.8s.
Updated compiler-test string assertions (core-+ -> +); compile-mode-test gains
native-op + IFn-dispatch cases; README documents compile mode. jpm test green.
Compile mode was broken: compiled defns interned only into the jolt namespace,
which Janet's eval couldn't see, so calling a compiled function threw 'unknown
symbol'. And load-string ignored :compile? entirely.
- Each context gets a persistent Janet env (ctx-janet-env), a child of the
compiler module env (so core-* resolve) holding the context's user defs.
compile-and-eval evals into it, so def/defn persist and resolve across forms;
contexts stay isolated. nil ctx (one-off eval) gets a fresh child.
- Emit a named fn for defn ((def f (fn f [..] (f ..)))) so recursion resolves
lexically (the anonymous form couldn't forward-reference f at compile time).
- Extract eval-one (per-form routing) and use it in both eval-string and
load-string, so load-string honors :compile?. Stateful forms still interpret.
compiled fib(30): ~50s (interpreted) -> 3.4s (~15x). spec: compile-mode-test
gains cross-form/recursion/def + context-isolation cases. jpm test green.
Fast operator emission (the rest of the win) is Phase 2.
Mine the phase* port batteries into the spec layer and delete them (their
behavior is now covered by spec): phase5 (hierarchies), phase6 (tagged
literals/reader-conditionals), phase7 (lazy/sets), phase8+phase12 (protocols;
phase12 was a duplicate of phase8), phase10 (strings/set), phase13
(reify/walk). Unique cases mined into spec: reader #inst/#uuid/#?@ splice,
(Type. args) dot constructor, lazy-seq body-runs-once, keywordize-keys/
stringify-keys, custom :default key and explicit :hierarchy dispatch.
phase6-final tested the COMPILE-MODE path ({:compile? true}), distinct from the
interpreter-based spec — kept and renamed integration/compile-mode-test.
jpm test green, conformance 218/218.
2026-06-05 01:07:09 -04:00
Renamed from test/integration/ports/phase6-final-test.janet (Browse further)
